The Sausage Link

By Lynsey Beth Futa

January 18, 2015

In preparation for a local-style potluck, everyone knows that you must have Redondo’s hot dogs and sausages on the grocery list.

The infamous red “dogs” fill up the grill just waiting to be eaten. They couldn’t cook fast enough though, for all the eager and expectant stomachs of Redondo veterans. And now, the company has introduced another soon-to-be island favorite. Enter Schau Essen sausage.

This German-style sausage is naturally smoked at Redondo’s warehouse in Waipahu. While other meat products are smoked in the standard smoking chambers, Schau Essen sausages are placed in a special smokehouse. Smaller but more powerful, the smokehouse is filled with fragrant smoked wood chips , including kiawe.

What makes the Schau Essen sausage so special? It could be the lamb casing that adds that snap everyone loves, or maybe it’s the natural smoke flavor that explodes with every bite.

Redondo’s introduced the new sausage last October for a trial sale, which was expected to end in January, but because kamaaina seem to love Schau Essen sausage so much, the company has decided to extend the product’s availability throughout February.

Sausage with cheese appetizer

Schau Essen sausage with dip

Miso Soup with Schau Essen sausage

You won’t find MSG in any of Redondo’s products, which ensures that they consist of 100 percent coarse-ground pork. The sausages are cooked for hours before entering the smokehouse where they undergo a quick and powerful smoking process, which results in a distinct and natural taste. Once thoroughly smoked, the product immediately cools down to prepare for packaging. This calculated process ensures that Schau Essen sausage is of the freshest quality when placed in your shopping carts.

Hitoshi Okada, president of Redondo’s shares with Dining Out a few ways he likes to enjoy his Schau Essen Sausage.

“Adding them (Schau Essen sausages) to miso soup is very, very good. It also tastes good with ramen,” he says.

Redondo’s also distributes Schau Essen sausage to other businesses and establishments, including bakeries, which incorporate the links into deliciously crunchy sausage rolls.

“We sell to The Great Hawaiian Hotdog stand in Waikiki,” says Okada. The stand uses Schau Essen sausage to make a gourmet dog that satisfies appetites with double the amount of snap and flavor.

Kamaaina might agree with Redondo’s production manager Kendrick Ho, who states exactly how he prefers to enjoy Schau Essen sausage.